1. Field of the Disclosed Embodiments
This disclosure relates to systems and methods for automatically detecting certain incidents in which customers attempt to circumvent costs associated with their managed service contracts for operations of image forming devices.
2. Related Art
Image forming device manufacturers and suppliers make extensive beneficial use of capabilities to remotely monitor and track characteristics regarding status and operations of image forming devices operated by end-users, including customers or customer organizations, often under conditions of a managed services agreement or contract.
Remote monitoring can be used to detect faults in fielded image forming devices. Based on a detection of one or more faults, a remote determination may be made by the device manufacturer of supplier to alert the end-user regarding the fault condition and what, if any, remedial actions the end-user may undertake to clear the fault condition. For example, a determination may be made as to whether the end-user can undertake local remedial action to clear the fault (potentially with instructions forwarded by a particular device manufacturer or supplier), or whether customer service personnel and/or maintenance technicians associated with the particular device manufacturer or supplier should be dispatched to perform the remedial actions, which may include maintenance and/or upgrades, to clear the fault.
Separately and/or additionally, remote monitoring can be used to track an operating status, life cycle status or actual or pending exhaustion status of one or more customer replaceable units (CRUs) or expendables in the image forming device. The device manufacturer or supplier is provided alerts regarding pending exhaustion or end-of-service life conditions in certain components to facilitate resupply of those components to the end-user on an “as needed” or “just-in-time” basis, obviating a need for the customer or customer organization to maintain an on-hand supply of particular customer replaceable components, including expendables.
Monitored characteristics can include static information, i.e., information that does not routinely change during normal operation of the image forming device, such as a model or serial number and/or a compatibility of a particular CRU with the image forming device. Monitored characteristics can also include dynamically changing information relating to one or more particular characteristics of the image forming device and/or installed components, including CRUs. The dynamically changing information includes, for example, information on use, maintenance, failures, diagnostics, remanufacture, and remaining service life or expendables levels of certain components in the image forming device.
Local and remote monitoring capabilities can provide an invaluable link between (1) the customers and customer organizations, and (2) the device manufacturers and suppliers once the image forming devices are fielded. The information in and from the image forming devices, and any installed components, is transmitted to a device manufacturer or supplier on an as available basis, a scheduled basis or in response to a particular query from the device manufacturer or supplier. The remote monitoring relieves the end-user of the burdens associated with monitoring device operations, and allows the device manufacturer or supplier to provide technical, maintenance, resupply and other services, including, for example, even facilitating correct billing for operation of, and services associated with, each individually fielded image forming device that is overseen as part of a managed service contract.
In image forming devices, systems for communicating with and/or remotely diagnosing the status of widely-dispersed devices are well-known. The image forming devices communicate via any manner of wired or wireless communication link with network interfaces such as, for example, via telephone lines, local area networks, and/or the Internet, in order to provide, for example, a remote device manufacturer or supplier service center with access to the image forming device in order to read status and/or diagnostic information produced by the image forming device and components installed in the image forming device. Remote and widely dispersed access is thus implemented such that an operator, supplier, manufacturer, diagnostic technician or other individual whose duties may require access to information regarding the status of the image forming device, or of any replaceable component operating within the image forming device, can review the information that they need and potentially organize responsive actions for device maintenance and/or error correction or avoidance.